Love?

"Love?" is Jennifer Lopez's 7th album which was released on April 28, 2011 on Island Def Jam Records. "Love?" is Jennifer's most personal album to date which takes inspiration from the birth of her twin children, Max and Emme. Jennifer refers the album as containing her best vocals to date.

Background\Recording

Jennifer had been working on new music while pregnant with her twins. In February of 2009, the song, "Hooked on You" was leaked to the Internet. Jennifer addressed the leak in May 2009. Songwriter Wynter Gordon addressed another song leaked that she wrote called "What is Love?" In June 2009, Jennifer told MTV's Larry Carol that she was keen to finish the album and announced a potential release date for her new album by the end of 2009.

In February of 2010, Jennifer left Sony Music Entertainment and Epic Records by mutual consent which halted production of the album. After Jennifer signed to Island Def Jam Music Group, she continued recording the album. According to the "New York Daily News," it was reported that Jennifer would be taking some of the music recorded under Sony Music to Island Def Jam so they could be included on the album. It was also reported that Island Def Jam would release a remix album along with the album.

According to AOL's music entertainment site, PopEater, it was reported that "Love?" was shelved by Epic Records and they never committed to releasing the album, even though it hasn't been confirmed by either Jennifer, Epic Records or Island Def Jam Music Group. In February of 2011, Jennifer told BBC that the album was nearly done and she had recorded 20 songs from 2009 to 2011 that were being considered for the album, but finding it hard to edit them.

While filming her movie, "The Backup Plan" in June of 2009, Jennifer revealed to MTV's Larry Carol that she had been working on her 7th album during her pregnancy, but it wasn't until her twins were born that Jennifer became focused on the album. The first song written was "(What is) Love?" (which was leaked in May of that same year) by Wynter Gordon and was produced by Emile Dernst II or "D'Mile." Songwriter\record producer, Jean Bapiste Kourame wrote a part 2 to "(What is) Love?" but it never made onto the album. "What is Love?" was released on the soundtrack to "The Backup Plan" movie which was released in 2010.

Wynter also wrote the song "Starting Over" which was co-written by Marcella Araica and Danja, who also produced the song. Wynter wrote the third song, "Everybody's Girl" which was co-written by Mike Caren, Shep Crawford, and Ollie Goldstein. Another leaked song was, "One Love" written by Jennifer Lopez along with Antea & Anesha Burchett, and D'Mile. Antea and Anesha Burchett had also co-written "Hooked on You" along with Muhammed Kateeb and Otis Greyson. They also co-wrote the song, "Love and War" along with Danja, who wrote the song, "Keeper," but both songs did not make the cut on the album. Another song, "Beautiful," a guitar-driven ballad was recorded for the album, but didn't make the cut.

Jennifer worked with Pharrell Williams and the Neptunes on the album as well. They produced the song "Fresh Out the Oven" that was promoted in nightclubs in the United States, but didn't make the cut on the album. Jennifer worked with Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins on the song, "This Cannot Be Love" which sampled Brandy & Monica's "The Boy is Mine," but also didn't make the cut on the album.

Jennifer also worked with Norwegian music producers, StarGate on the songs: "Story of My Life" and "I'm into You." "Story of My Life" didn't make the cut, but "I'm into You" did. Other producers included Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and The-Dream, who produced the song, "Louboutins" which topped the dance charts in the US, but didn't make onto the album or receive any airplay whatosever.

With Tricky and The-Dream, Jennifer recorded the song, "Run the World" which originally featured The-Dream and rapper Rick Ross, but were removed from the final track listing. Another song produced by The-Dream and Tricky was "Good Hit" that was initially lined up as a "buzz" single.

Jennifer also worked on the album with Moroccan music producer RedOne and recorded "On the Floor" and the songs "Invading My Mind" & "Hypnotico" which were also co-written by Lady Gaga. "Hypnotico" was originally recorded by Jamaican singer Tami Chynn for her shelved sophomore album, "Prima Donna." Jennifer also worked with producer Troy "Radio" Johnson on the album.

Title, Concept & Album Cover

Jennifer stated to MTV News that the album would have a very tight and focused concept, but she refused to reveal the album title's name or concept, saying it was personal to her. In October of 2009, Jennifer announced the album would be called "Love?" because according to her, love was something that still confused her and that's why "Love" has a question mark at the end of the word.

"Love?" combines pop, R&B, and hip-hop songs for a mixture of club-ready singles along with slower mid-tempo songs. The album cover was released on Barbara Walters' television special, "10 Most Fascinating People of 2010" which aired on December 11, 2010. On the cover, Jennifer is adorned with diamonds and a fur coat as she looks into the distance. The standard album edition contains 12 songs while the deluxe version contains 16 songs. The deluxe version features the same album cover as the standard album edition except the background and text is in pink while the standard is in blue.

Track Listing

1. On the Floor (ft. Pitbull)-(written by RedOne, Kinda Hamid, AJ Junior, Teddy Sky, Bilal Hajji, Armando Perez, Gonzalo Hermosa, and Ulises Hermosa; produced by RedOne)-[4:44]
2. Good Hit-(written and produced by Terius "The-Dream" Nash and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart)-[4:04]
3. I'm Into You (feat. Lil Wayne)-(written by Taio Cruz, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor E. Hermansen, and Dwayne Carter; produced by Stargate]-[3:20]
4. (What is) Love?-(written by Diana "Wynter" Gordon and Emile "D'Mile" Dernst II; produced by Emile "D'Mile" Dernst II)-[4:26]
5. Run The World-(written and produced by Terius "The-Dream" Nash and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart)-[3:55]
6. Papi-(written by Bilal Hajji, Achraf Janussi, Novel Janussi, Jimmy Joker, Nadir Khayat, and Geraldo Sandell; produced by RedOne, BeatGeek, and Jimmy Joker)-[3:43]
7. Until It Beats No More-(written by Troy "Radio" Johnson, Evan Bogart, and Jörgen Elofsson; produced by Troy "Radio" Johnson)-[3:52]
8. One Love-(written by Jennifer Lopez, Anesha & Antea Birchett, and Emile "D'Mile" Dernst; produced by Emile "D'Mile" Dernst)-[3:54]
9. Invading My Mind-(written by RedOne, AJ Junior, BeatGeek, Teddy Sky, Bilal Hajji, and Jimmy Joker; produced by Jennifer Lopez, RedOne, Lady Gaga, BeatGeek, and Jimmy Joker)-[3:20]
10. Villain-(written and produced by Terius "The-Dream" Nash and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart)-[4:03]
11. Starting Over-(written by Wynter Gordon, Marcella Araica, and Nathaniel "Danja" Hills; produced by Nathaniel "Danja" Hills)-[4:02]
12. Hypnotico-(written by RedOne, Lady Gaga, Aliaune "Akon" Thiame, Claude Kelly, and Tami Chynn; produced by Jimmy Joker)-[3:35]-[Bonus Track]
13. Everybody's Girl-(written by Michael Caren, Ollie Goldstein, Shep Crawford, and Wynter Gordon; produced by Mike Caren and Oliglee)-[3:28]-[Deluxe Edition Track]
14. Charge Me Up-(written by RedOne, AJ Junior, BeatGeek, Teddy Sky, and Jimmy Joker; produced by RedOne, BeatGeek, and Jimmy Joker)-[3:58]-[Deluxe Edition Track]
15. Take Care-(written by Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, Ester Dean, Stewart, Ester Dean, Makeba Riddick, Robyn Fenty, Tor E. Hermansen, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Robert Thompson, Eldra DeBarge, William DeBarge, and Etterlene Jordan; produced by Christopher "Tricky" Stewart)-[2:56]-[Deluxe Edition Track]
16. Ven a Bailar (Spanish version of "On the Floor")-(written by written by RedOne, Kinda Hamid, AJ Junior, Teddy Sky, Bilal Hajji, Armando Perez, Gonzalo Hermosa, and Ulises Hermosa; Spanish translation by Julio R. Copello and Jimena Romero; produced by RedOne)-[Deluxe Edition Track]

Personnel

Performance

• Jennifer Lopez – primary artist\lead vocals
• David Angell- vocalist on "Starting Over"
• Monisa Angell-viola on "Starting Over"
• Anesha Birchett – background vocals on "(What Is) Love?", "Run the World," and "One Love"
• John Catchings – cello on "Starting Over"
• Tami Chynn – additional vocals on "Hypnotico"
• David Davidson – violin
• Alli Davis – background vocals on "Good Hit"
• Lauren Evans – background vocals on "Run the World" and "Villain"
• Alessandro Giulini – accordion
• Diana "Wynter" Gordon – background vocals on "(What Is) Love?" and "Starting Over"
• Kuk Harrell – background vocals on "On the Floor" and "Run the World"
• Jack Jezioro – String Bass on "Starting Over"
• Anthony LaMarchina – cello on "Starting Over"
• Terius "The-Dream" Nash – background vocals on "Run the World"
• Jeanette Olsson – background vocals on "I'm Into You"
• Geraldo "Teddy Sky" Sandell – background vocals on "Invading My Mind" and "Charge Me Up"
• Pamela Sixfin – violin on "Starting Over"
• Kristin Wilkinson – viola on "Starting Over"
• Karen Winkelmann – violin on "Starting Over"

Miscellaneous

• Leesa D. Brunson – A&R coordination
• Tara Bryan – A&R administration
• Christopher Hicks – A&R
• Doug Joswick – package production
• Karen Kwak – A&R
• Julian Peploe Studio – art direction and design
• Deborah Mannis-Gardner – sample clearance
• Scott Marcus – A&R coordination
• Martina Nilsson – styling
• Mary Phillips – make-up
• Juan Carlos Maci Ques – hair
• JP Robinson – art direction and design
• Aaron D. Rosenberg – legal counsel
• Warwick Saint – photography
• Gabriela Schwartz – marketing
• The Medina Company – management
• Janelle White – A&R coordination
• Kristen Yiengst – photography coordination

Technical

• Jim Annunziato – engineer, vocal engineer, and vocal recording
• Marcella "Ms. Lago" Araica – engineer and mixing
• Nick Banns – assistant engineer
• Beatgeek – programming, producer, and instrumentation
• Tim Blacksmith – management
• Anesha Birchett – vocal producer
• Al Burna – vocal engineer
• Michael "Banger" Cadahia – engineer and vocal recording
• Dustin Capulong – assistant engineer
• Danny D. – management
• David Davidson – string arrangements
• Steven Dennis – assistant engineer
• Mike "Handz" Donaldson – mixing
• Dernst "D'Mile" Emile II – producer and engineer
• Eric Eylands – recording assistant
• Stefani "Lady Gaga" Germanotta – producer
• Chris Galland – assistant engineer
• Elizabeth Gallardo – assistant recording engineer
• Jesus Garnica – assistant mastering engineer
• Shani Gonzales – additional A&R
• Gene Grimaldi – mastering
• Josh Gudwin – vocal recording and engineering
• Kuk Harrell – vocal arrangements, vocal engineer, vocal producer, and vocal editing
• Nathaniel "Danja" Hills – producer
• Ghazi Hourani – recording assistant
• Jimmy Joker – programming, producer, instrumentation
• Jaycen Joshua – mixing
• Doug Joswick – package production
• John "J-Banga" Kercy – additional Pro-Tools
• Nadir "RedOne" Khayat – producer, vocal arranger, vocal editor, vocal producer, instruments and programming, recording engineer, and executive producer
• Damien Lewis – engineer, assistant mixing engineer, and additional mixing
• Jennifer Lopez – producer and executive producer
• Erik Madrid – mixing
• Manny Marroquin – mixing
• Benny Medina – executive producer
• Trevor Muzzy – audio mixer, recording engineer
• Terius "The-Dream" Nash – producer
• Chris "Tek" O'Ryan – engineer, vocal editing
• Julian Peploe – art direction
• Antonio "L.A." Reid – executive producer
• Bobby Shin – engineer (strings)
• Chris Soper – assistant engineer
• StarGate (Tor Erik Hermansen & Mikkel Storleer Erikssen) – producer, instruments, engineer, recording engineer
• Christopher "Tricky" Stewart – producer
• Phil Tan – mixing
• Brian "B-Luv" Thomas – engineer
• Pat Thrall – engineer
• Miles Walker – engineer
• Andrew Wuepper – engineer
• Kristen Yiengst – photo coordination

Charts

Chart (2011) Peak position Australian Albums Chart 9 Australian Urban Albums Chart 2 Austrian Albums Chart 7 Belgian Albums Chart 18 Canadian Albums Chart 2 Croatian International Albums Chart 2 Czech Albums Chart 1 Dutch Albums Chart 18 Finnish Albums Chart 5 French Albums Chart 7 German Albums Chart 4 Greek Albums Chart 3 Hungarian Albums Chart 13 Irish Albums Chart 7 Italian Albums Chart 6 Japanese Albums Chart 5 Mexican Albums Chart 5 New Zealand Albums Chart 12 Norwegian Albums Chart 6 Polish Albums Chart 13 Portuguese Albums Chart 13 Russian Albums Chart 4 Scottish Albums Chart 6 Slovenian Albums Chart 6 Spanish Albums Chart 3 Swedish Albums Chart 14 Swiss Albums Chart 1 Taiwanese Albums Chart 4 UK Albums Chart 6 UK R&B Albums Chart 2 US Billboard 200 5

Album Release History Region Date Format Label Edition(s) Catalog Greece April 28, 2011 CD, digital download Universal Music Group Standard, deluxe edition 602527534343 / 602527704647 Australia April 29, 2011 2753434 Germany 0602527534343 Ireland Brazil Digital download Deluxe edition France CD, digital download United Kingdom Mercury Records Standard, deluxe edition Canada May 3, 2011 Universal Music Mexico Standard, deluxe edition 602527534343 United States Island Records Standard, deluxe edition Brazil CD Universal Music Standard Denmark May 4, 2011 CD, digital download United States May 10, 2011 CD Island Glitterati edition Japan May 18, 2011 CD, digital download Universal Music Japan UICL1111